Lahore (Agenzia Fides) – “It is really shocking for us that the controversial Indian Islamic preacher Zakir Naik has been invited by the Pakistani government and is appearing in the main Pakistani cities to sow religious hatred,” said to Fides the Dominican Father James Channan, who directs the “Peace Center” in Lahore, which organizes numerous conferences, dialogue forums and interreligious meetings. Father Channan is very concerned about “the denigrations that are being made against Christianity, Judaism and Hinduism, which are very painful”. “We do not understand why Naik is given so much space: he has also preached in the Royal Mosque in Lahore, in front of 150,000 people and hundreds of thousands of Muslim believers connected via the Internet, insulting and ridiculing various religions, causing resentment even among Shiites and Ahmadis.” “His words are causing religious tension and polarization in Pakistan that can turn into violence,” warns the Dominican priest, noting that Naik’s speeches “have caused concern among Christians, Hindus and Sikhs.” “He has uttered words of contempt towards the Trinity, Jesus Christ, the Bible, the Torah and the sacred texts of the Hindus… We are very bitter because these interventions are destroying the constant work of dialogue and peaceful relations that we have patiently built in Pakistan,” laments Father Channan. Leaders of various religious communities condemned Zakir Naik’s hate speech and derogatory remarks and expressed their deep concern and disappointment: “His presence os detrimental to efforts to promote harmony and interfaith coexistence. The Pakistani government has the duty to prevent hatred and violence and ensure the safety and security of minority communities. The Ministry of Harmony should promote tolerance, understanding and respect among different faith communities. We believe that dialogue and cooperation between religions are essential for building a peaceful and harmonious society. Therefore, inviting a controversial leader is an unclear step,” the priest said. Zakir Naik is known for his sectarian speeches and his appearances have already been banned from countries such as India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and the United Kingdom. “So why not invite the Imam of the Kaaba in Mecca, who always proclaims a message of peace and tolerance?” asks Father Channan, pointing to the deep disappointment of many Sunni Muslim believers and religious leaders who also do not appreciate Zakir Naik’s approach. Meanwhile, Christian, Hindu and Sikh leaders boycotted an interreligious conference organized by the Ministry of Harmony in Lahore in recent days. “We wanted to send a signal. The state and religions must work together to promote dialogue and peace and not sow hatred. We are and will always be ready to work together with good will and make our contribution to dialogue, respect, tolerance, peace and harmony,” he concluded. (PA) (Agenzia Fides, 18/10/2024)
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Nairobi (Agenzia Fides) – The Kenyan Minister of the Interior, Kithure Kindiki, was appointed Deputy President of Kenya today, October 18, replacing Rigathi Gachagua, who was removed from office yesterday, October 17, by the Senate after a vote to impeach him (see Fides, 8/10/2024). The appointment was announced by the Speaker of Parliament, Moses Wetang’ula. Gachagua was accused of 11 counts, including the illicit accumulation of wealth of around 36 million. Last night, the required two-thirds majority of the 67 senators confirmed five charges, including inciting ethnic division and violating the oath of office. This is more than enough to remove him from office and bar him from holding public office for life. The former vice president had promised to defend himself to the end and prove his innocence, but was unable to do so, as he was hospitalized with suspected heart attack and severe chest pains. President Ruto and his deputy Gachagua were elected together two years ago. Gachagua brought Ruto support in Mount Kenya, the bastion of the Kikuyu population, which forms the largest electoral bloc in Kenya. It is no coincidence that the successor chosen by President Ruto, Kithure Kindiki, also comes from the Mount Kenya region. It was against such ethnic motivations to consolidate political power that the young people who have taken to the streets in recent months had protested. They demand the overcoming of outdated structures and solutions to the real problems of Kenyans: the lack of jobs, the economic crisis and the high cost of living (see Fides, 26/6/2024). (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides, 18/10/2024)
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Niamey (Agenzia Fides) – The military junta in Niger has banned the export of pulses and cereals, except for those to countries belonging to the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), which brings together Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso).This was announced on October 16 by General Abdourahamane Tchiani, head of the military junta National Council for the Protection of the Fatherland (CNSP), who explained that the export of rice, millet, sorghum, niébé (“cowpea”) and corn will be banned. The measure was taken to “protect the supply of the domestic market” and “make these agricultural products accessible on the markets”. The statement specifies that “the ban does not apply to exports to the member states of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), namely Burkina Faso and Mali”.The government also says it is considering appropriate support measures so that producers receive fair remuneration for their production. Niger is struggling with the consequences of the severe floods that have devastated several areas of the country since June, claiming at least 330 lives. In an attempt to promote the reconstruction of the country, the government has also reduced the cost of cement. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides, 18/10/2024)
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by Fabio BerettaDhaka (Agenzia Fides) – Easter should become a national holiday. This is what the Christians of Bangladesh are asking the transitional government to do in a letter signed by Bishop Bejoy N. D’Cruze, President of the Bishops’ Conference and the United Forum of Churches of Bangladesh (which brings together all the other Christian denominations in the country), addressed to the head of the transitional government of Bangladesh, Muhammad Yunus.The letter, which was received by Fides, assures the government of the prayers of the Christian community and recalls that Easter, “the day on which we celebrate the victory of our Lord Jesus Christ over sin and death, is one of the most important celebrations of Christianity”. “Unfortunately, despite repeated requests to previous governments, this day of immense importance is not recognized as a national holiday in the country. As a result, many Catholics cannot attend religious services and Holy Mass, thus violating their religious obligations,” the letter continues. And the problem affects not only workers, but also students, because “some exams often fall on this day and Christian students feel oppressed because they cannot celebrate with the community.” “We ask,” the letter continues, “that we, like other religions in our country, have the opportunity to celebrate this important and solemn holiday. Although the Christian population is not very large, we are an integral part of this country and make a significant contribution to development through our community services,” especially “in the areas of education, medical care, poverty alleviation and other development programs.” “We welcome the reform initiatives of your government,” the letter concludes, “and ask you to consider declaring Easter Sunday a public holiday so that the Christian community can celebrate important rituals.” (Agenzia Fides, 18/10/2024)
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Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
Ian Murray today signed an SAO to ensure the Scottish Government’s new Pension Age Disability Payment is recognised in the same way as Attendance Allowance.
Ian Murray signing the Scotland Act Order in Queen Elizabeth House
The Scottish Secretary, Ian Murray, today [18 October] completed the legislative process to ensure that the Scottish Government’s new Pension Age Disability Payment (PADP) is recognised in the same way as Attendance Allowance (AA).
In Spring 2024, the Scottish Government legislated to replace AA with PADP. This followed the Scotland Act 2016, which delivered new welfare powers for Holyrood.
Mr Murray said:
Resetting the relationship between Scotland’s two governments has been a priority for the Prime Minister and myself since the election.
The Scottish Parliament has chosen to legislate for Pension Age Disability Payment to replace Attendance Allowance, and the UK Government will work to ensure these payments work within the broader UK benefits framework – so Scots don’t lose out on things like their £10 Christmas Bonus.
This is about the UK Government and the Scottish Government working together. This is devolution in action. The vast majority of Scots want to see their governments work together to produce better results, that’s what we’re getting on with doing.
Scotland Act Orders are pieces of secondary legislation made under the Scotland Act 1998. They are used to implement, update or adjust Scotland’s devolution settlement.
This order ensures that people receiving the new payment qualify for relevant entitlements reserved to the UK Government, such as the £10 Christmas Bonus.
The signing of the Order followed a debate in Parliament in October.
Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Mike Lawler (R, NY-17)
Congressman Mike Lawler Introduces Legislation Cracking Down on Foreign Governments That Wrongfully Detain Americans
Washington, DC, October 18, 2024
Today, Congressman Mike Lawler announced legislation he introduced to hold nations accountable for taking American citizens hostage or otherwise wrongfully detaining them. The bill, the State Sponsor of Wrongful or Unlawful Detention Act, will establish a designation of state sponsor of wrongful or unlawful detention. Countries with this designation would be subject to certain sanctions and be prohibited from receiving foreign assistance. This status would be reflected in travel advisories and the State Department will work with airlines to provide warnings for travelers as well.
“The number of incidents in which American citizens have been taken hostage while traveling abroad is deeply disturbing, and foreign governments that repeatedly engage in this behavior must be held accountable,” said Congressman Lawler. “Congress must do more to protect Americans and deter incidents from happening in the first place. The State Sponsor of Wrongful or Unlawful Detention Act will ensure this is the case and I look forward to working with colleagues in both parties to get this bill passed as swiftly as possible.”
Congressman Lawler is one of the most bipartisan members of the 118th Congress and represents New York’s 17th Congressional District, which is just north of New York City and contains all or parts of Rockland, Putnam, Dutchess, and Westchester Counties.
Source: The Conversation – USA – By Sophie Blondel, Research Assistant Professor of Nuclear Engineering, University of Tennessee
A fusion experiment ran so hot that the wall materials facing the plasma retained defects.Christophe Roux/CEA IRFM, CC BY
Fusion energy has the potential to be an effective clean energy source, as its reactions generate incredibly large amounts of energy. Fusion reactors aim to reproduce on Earth what happens in the core of the Sun, where very light elements merge and release energy in the process. Engineers can harness this energy to heat water and generate electricity through a steam turbine, but the path to fusion isn’t completely straightforward.
Controlled nuclear fusion has several advantages over other power sources for generating electricity. For one, the fusion reaction itself doesn’t produce any carbon dioxide. There is no risk of meltdown, and the reaction doesn’t generate any long-lived radioactive waste.
I’m a nuclear engineer who studies materials that scientists could use in fusion reactors. Fusion takes place at incredibly high temperatures. So to one day make fusion a feasible energy source, reactors will need to be built with materials that can survive the heat and irradiation generated by fusion reactions.
Fusion material challenges
Several types of elements can merge during a fusion reaction. The one most scientists prefer is deuterium plus tritium. These two elements have the highest likelihood of fusing at temperatures that a reactor can maintain. This reaction generates a helium atom and a neutron, which carries most of the energy from the reaction.
Humans have successfully generated fusion reactions on Earth since 1952 – some even in their garage. But the trick now is to make it worth it. You need to get more energy out of the process than you put in to initiate the reaction.
Fusion reactions happen in a very hot plasma, which is a state of matter similar to gas but made of charged particles. The plasma needs to stay extremely hot – over 100 million degrees Celsius – and condensed for the duration of the reaction.
To keep the plasma hot and condensed and create a reaction that can keep going, you need special materials making up the reactor walls. You also need a cheap and reliable source of fuel.
While deuterium is very common and obtained from water, tritium is very rare. A 1-gigawatt fusion reactor is expected to burn 56 kilograms of tritium annually. But the world has only about 25 kilograms of tritium commercially available.
Researchers need to find alternative sources for tritium before fusion energy can get off the ground. One option is to have each reactor generating its own tritium through a system called the breeding blanket.
The breeding blanket makes up the first layer of the plasma chamber walls and contains lithium that reacts with the neutrons generated in the fusion reaction to produce tritium. The blanket also converts the energy carried by these neutrons to heat.
The fusion reaction chamber at ITER will electrify the plasma.
Fusion devices also need a divertor, which extracts the heat and ash produced in the reaction. The divertor helps keep the reactions going for longer.
These materials will be exposed to unprecedented levels of heat and particle bombardment. And there aren’t currently any experimental facilities to reproduce these conditions and test materials in a real-world scenario. So, the focus of my research is to bridge this gap using models and computer simulations.
From the atom to full device
My colleagues and I work on producing tools that can predict how the materials in a fusion reactor erode, and how their properties change when they are exposed to extreme heat and lots of particle radiation.
As they get irradiated, defects can form and grow in these materials, which affect how well they react to heat and stress. In the future, we hope that government agencies and private companies can use these tools to design fusion power plants.
Our approach, called multiscale modeling, consists of looking at the physics in these materials over different time and length scales with a range of computational models.
We first study the phenomena happening in these materials at the atomic scale through accurate but expensive simulations. For instance, one simulation might examine how hydrogen moves within a material during irradiation.
From these simulations, we look at properties such as diffusivity, which tells us how much the hydrogen can spread throughout the material.
We can integrate the information from these atomic level simulations into less expensive simulations, which look at how the materials react at a larger scale. These larger-scale simulations are less expensive because they model the materials as a continuum instead of considering every single atom.
The atomic-scale simulations could take weeks to run on a supercomputer, while the continuum one will take only a few hours.
All this modeling work happening on computers is then compared with experimental results obtained in laboratories.
For example, if one side of the material has hydrogen gas, we want to know how much hydrogen leaks to the other side of the material. If the model and the experimental results match, we can have confidence in the model and use it to predict the behavior of the same material under the conditions we would expect in a fusion device.
If they don’t match, we go back to the atomic-scale simulations to investigate what we missed.
Additionally, we can couple the larger-scale material model to plasma models. These models can tell us which parts of a fusion reactor will be the hottest or have the most particle bombardment. From there, we can evaluate more scenarios.
For instance, if too much hydrogen leaks through the material during the operation of the fusion reactor, we could recommend making the material thicker in certain places, or adding something to trap the hydrogen.
Designing new materials
As the quest for commercial fusion energy continues, scientists will need to engineer more resilient materials. The field of possibilities is daunting – engineers can manufacture multiple elements together in many ways.
You could combine two elements to create a new material, but how do you know what the right proportion is of each element? And what if you want to try mixing five or more elements together? It would take way too long to try to run our simulations for all of these possibilities.
Thankfully, artificial intelligence is here to assist. By combining experimental and simulation results, analytical AI can recommend combinations that are most likely to have the properties we’re looking for, such as heat and stress resistance.
The aim is to reduce the number of materials that an engineer would have to produce and test experimentally to save time and money.
Sophie Blondel receives funding from the US Department of Energy.
The Federal Trade Commission is one of the main venues for government regulation of big tech and its wares. Alpha Photo/Flickr, CC BY-NC
It’s not surprising that technology regulation is an important issue in the 2024 U.S. presidential campaign.
The past decade has seen advanced technologies, from social media algorithms to large language model artificial intelligence systems, profoundly affect society. These changes, which spanned the Trump and Biden-Harris administrations, spurred calls for the federal government to regulate the technologies and the powerful corporations that wield them.
With artificial intelligence now widespread, governments worldwide are grappling with how to regulate various aspects of the technology. The candidates offer different visions for U.S. AI policy. One area where there is a stark difference is in recognizing and addressing algorithmic harms from the widespread use of AI technology.
At the AI Safety Summit in the U.K. in November 2023, Harris spoke of the promise of AI but also the perils from algorithmic bias, deepfakes and wrongful arrests. Biden signed an executive order on AI on Oct. 30, 2023, that recognized AI systems can pose unacceptable risks of harm to civil and human rights and individual well-being. In parallel, federal agencies such as the Federal Trade Commission have carried out enforcement actions to guard against algorithmic harms.
President Joe Biden signs an executive order addressing the risks of artificial intelligence on Oct. 30, 2023, with Vice President Kamala Harris at his side. AP Photo/Evan Vucci
By contrast, the Trump administration did not take a public stance on mitigation of algorithmic harms. Trump has said he wants to repeal President Biden’s AI executive order. In recent interviews, however, Trump noted the dangers from technologies such as deepfakes and challenges posed to security from AI systems, suggesting a willingness to engage with the growing risks from AI.
The Biden-Harris administration has tried to go further. Harris convened the heads of Google, Microsoft and other tech companies at the White House on May 4, 2023, to undertake a set of voluntary commitments to safeguard individual rights. The Biden administration’s executive order contains an important initiative to probe the vulnerablity of very large-scale, general-purpose AI models trained on massive amounts of data. The goal is to determine the risks hackers pose to these models, including the ones that power OpenAI’s popular ChatGPT and DALL-E.
Donald Trump departs from Washington D.C., on Feb. 11, 2019, shortly after signing an executive order on artificial intelligence that included setting technical standards. Nicholas Kamm/AFP via Getty Images
Antitrust
Antitrust law enforcement – restricting or conditioning mergers and acquisitions – is another way the federal government regulates the technology industry.
Biden signed an executive order on July 9, 2021, to enforce antitrust laws arising from the anticompetitive effects of dominant internet platforms. The order also targeted the acquisition of nascent competitors, the aggregation of data, unfair competition in attention markets and the surveillance of users. The Biden-Harris administration has filed antitrust cases against Apple and Google.
The Biden-Harris administration’s merger guidelines in 2023 outlined rules to determine when mergers can be considered anticompetitive. While both administrations filed antitrust cases, the Biden administration’s antitrust push appears stronger in terms of its impact in potentially reorganizing or even orchestrating a breakup of dominant companies such as Google.
Biden’s AI executive order calls on Congress to adopt privacy legislation, but it does not provide a legislative framework to do so. The Trump White House’s American AI Initiative executive order mentions privacy only in broad terms, calling for AI technologies to uphold “civil liberties, privacy, and American values.” The order did not mention how existing privacy protections would be enforced.
Across the U.S., several states have tried to pass legislation addressing aspects of data privacy. At present, there is a patchwork of statewide initiatives and a lack of comprehensive data privacy legislation at the federal level.
The paucity of federal data privacy protections is a stark reminder that while the candidates are addressing some of the challenges posed by developments in AI and technology more broadly, a lot still remains to be done to regulate technology in the public interest.
Overall, the Biden administration’s efforts at antitrust and technology regulation seem broadly aligned with the goal of reining in technology companies and protecting consumers. It’s also reimagining monopoly protections for the 21st century. This seems to be the chief difference between the two administrations.
Anjana Susarla receives funding from the National Institute of Health
In 1770, Barnard Gratz of Philadelphia wrote to a friend complaining about a recent speech by King George III. Gratz, an American patriot, wrote that the speech “was such narishkeit” that it was “not worth the postage.”
Narishkeit is Yiddish for “nonsense.”
Gratz was one of hundreds of Jews who joined the American Revolution as soldiers and leaders: Gershom Seixas led his synagogue out of New York when the British invaded and led what was probably the first Jewish prayer group in Connecticut. Solomon Bush earned the rank of lieutenant colonel in the American army; at the time, no Jew in Europe could serve as a military officer. At the battle of Beaufort, one of the patriot militias was nicknamed “the Jew Company” because 28 of its 40 members were Jewish.
Yet belief persists that the American Revolution was somehow a Christian event – and that the country it created is therefore a Christian nation. This is a position usually defended with vague statements about what the Founding Fathers wanted. The general idea is that back in the day, everyone was Christian and so, of course, the founding was Christian. Yet neither the Declaration of Independence nor the Constitution refer to a “Christian nation” or a church. They don’t even mention Jesus Christ.
But as a historian, I didn’t want to get caught up in these kinds of arguments. I wanted to know something about the people who actually did the fighting in the war.
What I discovered is that when it came to fighting Britain, there were plenty of Jewish patriots signing up. America’s revolutionaries were not a uniform bunch of Christian white guys. The Revolution was a religiously diverse place, from Jews and religious skeptics to Catholics and Christian dissenters. And that matters for how the U.S. defines itself and its freedom today.
Jews join the cause
When the war started in 1775, the roughly 2,500 Jews in the Colonies did not have religious freedom. British law allowed them to practice, but they were classified as “residents” rather than subjects. They could live there, but they had no say in the laws under which they lived. For the most part, only property-owning Protestant men could elect or be elected to their legislature. Jews were simply not considered people the way Protestant Christians were.
So when the break with Britain arrived, American Jews flocked to the standard of liberty. Here at last was a chance to become citizens.
Under British rule, anyone who exercised political authority had to take an oath affirming their Christian faith. The pro-independence groups and militias that sprung up amid the war had no such rules. Mordecai Sheftall, who lived in Georgia, was one of the few people there who had pledged to resist the Coercive Acts: Britain’s efforts to blockade Boston and place Massachusetts under military rule after the Boston Tea Party. When the war broke out, Sheftall became chairman of Georgia’s de facto government, in defiance of British rule.
When the war ended, Philadelphia hosted a parade and all the clergy of the city were invited, including Jewish leaders. There was even a kosher table set out for them after the celebration.
The Baptists of Virginia were also held in second-class status. The Colony’s state church did not recognize the Baptists, and they had to pay fines for preaching and even for holding Baptist weddings without state sanction. Virginia Baptists promised their support to the Revolution only if Virginia would offer them religious freedom. The Virginia Legislature complained but suspended its state church to build whatever support it could find. Virginia Baptists joined the fight in droves.
Baptists, Catholics and Jews were not put off by any of the Revolution’s radical deists: a mostly unorganized group of religious thinkers who believed in God and reason, but not revelation or miracles. Their ranks included military officer Ethan Allen of Vermont, who later wrote a book denying the divinity of the Bible. The Revolution did not ask its members how they prayed.
The urge for liberty spread beyond questions of religious differences. Although George Washington did not originally want to enlist Black men in the army, he realized the Revolution was doomed without them, and thousands of Black Americans joined the cause in the hope that liberty would mean the end of slavery. Women such as Deborah Sampson wore men’s clothing to take up arms against the British. The revolutionaries even had a Muslim ally in the form of Hyder Ali and his armies. The Muslim ruler of the kingdom of Mysore, in southern India, Ali fought with France against Britain in the 1780s, and American revolutionaries named a ship after him.
Retired Marine Corps Col. Jonathan de Sola Mendes commemorates members of Shearith Israel, the congregation led by Gershom Seixas, who served in the American Revolution. Akiva123/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA
Here from the start
In recent years, violence and anger have risen against minority groups, including Jewish and Muslim Americans. Part of the false rhetoric about these groups has been that they are “new”: that they appeared after America was created and are not really part of the American experiment. In fact, they were here from the beginning. They also fought for the Revolution. Their patriotism is as old as anyone else’s.
Not only were the people who founded the nation not all Christian, but after independence was secured, religious freedom actually increased.
States with synagogues all lost the Christian requirement for public office by 1792. Virginia created full religious freedom in 1786. And Washington wrote, “It is our boast, that a man’s religious tenets will not forfeit the protection of the laws, nor deprive him of the right of attaining and holding the highest offices that are known in the United States.”
Calls for a Christian nation are historically false. They are not a reversion to something old; they are something new. Religious diversity in America, and the freedom of different religions to be full Americans? That’s old. As old as the Revolution.
Adam Jortner does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
U.S. blasphemy laws reflect a complex fight for the freedom of religion and speechGetty Images
Some 79 countries around the world continue to enforce blasphemy laws. And in places such as Afghanistan, Brunei, Iran, Nigeria, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, violation of these measures can result in a death penalty.
While the U.S. is not among those countries, it also has a long history of blasphemy laws. Many of the U.S. colonies established blasphemy laws, which became state laws. The U.S. Supreme Court did not rule that blasphemy was a form of protected speech until 1952. Even then, it has not always been protected.
U.S. colonies often developed legal protections for Christians to practice their religion. These safeguards often did not extend to non-Christians.
Maryland’s Toleration Act of 1649, for example, was the first Colonial act to refer to the “free exercise” of religion and was designed to protect Christians from religious persecution from state officials. It did not, however, extend that “free exercise” of religion to non-Christians, instead declaring that anyone who blasphemes against God by cursing him or denying the existence of Jesus can be punished by death or the forfeiture of their lands to the state.
In 1811, the U.S. witnessed one of its most infamous blasphemy trials, People v. Ruggles, at the New York Supreme Court. New York resident John Ruggles received a three-month prison sentence and a US$500 fine — about $12,000 in today’s money — for stating in public that “Jesus Christ was a bastard, and his mother must be a whore.”
Chief Justice James Kent argued that people have freedom of religious opinion, but opinions that were malicious toward the majority stance of Christianity were an abuse of that right. He claimed similar attacks on other religions, such as Islam and Buddhism, would not be punishable by law, because “we are a Christian people” whose country does not draw on the doctrines of “those imposters.”
Several years later, in 1824, a member of a debating society was convicted of blasphemy by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court after saying during a debate: “The Holy Scriptures were a mere fable, that they were a contradiction, and that although they contained a number of good things, yet they contained a great many lies.” In this case — Updegraph v. Commonwealth — the court argued that it was a “vulgarly shocking and insulting” statement that reflected “the highest offence” against public morals and was a disturbance to “public peace.”
By the end of the 19th century, a prominent free thought movement that rejected religion as a guide for reason had begun to emerge. Movement leaders embraced the public critiquing of Christianity and challenged laws that favored Christians, such as blasphemy laws and mandatory Bible readings in public schools.
While it is unclear why Reynolds was offered leniency, historian Leonard Levy suggests that it may have been to avoid making Reynolds a martyr of the free thought movement by imprisoning him.
Protecting blaspheme as free speech
Growing calls for religious equality and freedom of speech increasingly swayed blasphemy cases in the 1900s.
In 1917, for example, Michael X. Mockus, who had previously been convicted of blasphemy in Connecticut for his free thought lectures, was acquitted in a similar case in Illinois.
While expressing dislike for blasphemy, Judge Perry L. Persons argued that the court’s job is not to determine which religion is right. He said “the Protestant, Catholic, Mormon, Mahammedan, the Jew, the Freethinker, the Atheist” must “all stand equal before the law.”
The high court ruled that states could not ban sacrilegious films. That would be a violation of the separation of church and state, it ruled, and an unconstitutional restriction on freedom of religion and speech.
Even after the Supreme Court decision, Americans continued to occasionally face blasphemy charges. But courts shot the charges down.
In 1968, when Irving West, a 20-year-old veteran, told a policeman to “Get your goddam hands off me” after getting in a fight, he was charged with disorderly conduct and violating Maryland’s blasphemy law. When West appealed, a circuit court judge ruled the law was an unconstitutional violation of the First Amendment.
Despite these rulings, in 1977, Pennsylvania enacted a blasphemy statute banning businesses from having blasphemous names after a local businessman tried to name his gun store “The God Damn Gun Shop.” It was not until 2010 that the Pennsylvania Supreme Court deemed this statute unconstitutional.
The decision followed a case in which the owner of a film production company sued the state after his request to register his company under the name “I Choose Hell Productions, LLC” was denied on the grounds that it was blasphemous. Citing the 1952 Joseph Burstyn, Inc. v. Wilson case, the judge ruled that the statute was a violation of First Amendment rights.
A sign of democratic freedom
As historian David Sehat highlights in his book “The Myth of American Religious Freedom”, since America was founded there have been strong disagreements over what religious freedom should look like. Blasphemy laws have been a key part of this clash.
Historically, many Americans have viewed the laws as justifiable. Some believed Christianity deserved special protection and reverence. Others, including some Founding Fathers such as John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, have viewed the same laws as unconstitutional restrictions of free speech and religious expression.
There has recently been growing attention to the rise of Christian nationalism, the belief that the United States is or should be a Christian nation. Amid this rise, there have been attacks on free speech, such as the increase in book bans and restrictions on public protests. I believe it’s important that we, as Americans, learn from this history of the fight for the freedom of religion and speech.
Kristina M. Lee is a board member for the Secular Student Alliance
Source: The Conversation – USA – By Verna Kale, Associate Editor, The Letters of Ernest Hemingway and Associate Research Professor of English, Penn State
Rescue workers search debris for victims of the Labor Day hurricane of 1935, a Category 5 storm that devastated parts of the Florida Keys.Bettman/Getty Images
As one of the editors of “The Letters of Ernest Hemingway Volume 6 (1934-1936),” with Sandra Spanier and Miriam B. Mandel, I am reminded of the eyewitness account that the writer, then a resident of Key West, Florida, gave of the catastrophic storm that leveled Upper Matecumbe Key and Lower Matecumbe Key and took the lives of more than 400 people, many of them World War I veterans.
Then, as now, the aftermath of a natural disaster included political finger-pointing.
Back then, Hemingway had a different beef with the government, blaming the deaths of hundreds of World War I veterans on the failure to evacuate Upper Matecumbe Key and Lower Matecumbe Key ahead of the storm.
The calm before the storm
Hemingway was no stranger to hurricanes.
A serious deep-sea angler who fished the waters off Florida, he kept an eye on weather patterns. Hurricane season was an anticipated, if dreaded, annual event.
“Now the lousy hurricanes are starting,” he wrote his friends Jane and Grant Mason in June 1934. “Wish we would get lots of east wind and current … and then have a fine july and august without hurricanes.” Knowing that these conditions were unlikely, he jokingly asked the Masons “and what do you want for xmas Mr. and Mrs. Mason yourselves?”
In a Sept. 30, 1934, letter, he wrote friends Gerald and Sara Murphy with hopes that he would get through the rest of hurricane season without incident: “no hurricanes yet […] if we get through the next 20 [days] are all right,” and he was glad that he “can fish without having to tie [the boat] up somewhere up some creek.”
The next day, he wrote to fellow novelist John Dos Passos, “Hurricane months if you dont get a hurricane are fine.”
‘Not a building of any sort standing’
But the following year, when the hurricanes did come, it was not fine.
Over Sept. 2-3, 1935, a hurricane made landfall in the Florida Keys. Occurring in the days before storms were given names, the Labor Day hurricane, as it is commonly known, was the first recorded Category 5 hurricane in the U.S.
It remains the third-most intense storm on record in the Atlantic basin, with a barometric pressure drop to 892 millibars and wind gusts exceeding 200 mph. Much of its damage was caused by the storm surge, and the Overseas Railroad, which had been completed in 1912 and connected the Florida Keys to the mainland, was destroyed and would not be rebuilt.
After the storm, Hemingway wrote to his editor, Maxwell Perkins, describing its aftermath.
Though communications were down and the island was cut off from the mainland, Key West had sustained relatively little damage.
Upper Matecumbe Key and Lower Matecumbe Key, however, were a different story.
“Imagine you have read about it in the papers but nothing could give an idea of the destruction,” Hemingway writes. “The foliage absolutely stripped as though by fire for forty miles and the land looking like the abandoned bed of a river. Not a building of any sort standing. Over thirty miles of railway washed and blown away.”
Worse yet were the human casualties: He notes that the last time he witnessed so many dead in one place was in Europe during World War I as a Red Cross ambulance driver, adding, “We made five trips with provisions for survivors to different places and nothing but dead men to eat the grub.”
Many of the victims were veterans, employed by the Federal Emergency Relief Administration to work on the Overseas Highway construction project. Outraged by the federal government’s failure to send a train to evacuate the workers in time, Hemingway tells Perkins that the veterans “were practically murdered.”
Federal administrators, he adds, “had all day Sunday and all day monday to get those vets out and never did it. If they had taken half the precautions with them that we took with our boat not a one would have been lost.”
The letter contains graphic descriptions of the hundreds of dead bodies, rapidly decomposing in the Florida sun as they awaited transport to Arlington, Virginia, to be buried.
‘That smell you thought you’d never smell again’
Hemingway would repeat many of these same details in an article published in the Sept. 17, 1935, issue of the leftist magazine The New Masses.
The article, which Hemingway titled “Who Killed These Men?,” and which was re-titled by the editors as “Who Murdered the Vets?,” criticized the federal government for not evacuating the workers.
“Who sent nearly a thousand war veterans … to live in frame shacks on the Florida Keys in hurricane months?” Hemingway asks.
Hemingway, no stranger to the sight and smell of the dead from his experiences during World War I, was disgusted not merely by the bodies “swollen and stinking” but by what brought the veterans to the work camps to begin with.
Skeptical of the various government programs of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal, Hemingway saw the Federal Emergency Relief Administration work camps as a way for Washington to conveniently rid itself of hundreds of down-on-their-luck veterans, many of whom were experiencing what we would now call post-traumatic stress disorder.
“I would like to make whoever sent them there carry just one out through the mangroves, or turn one over that lay in the sun along the fill, or tie five together so they won’t float out, or smell that smell you thought you’d never smell again, with luck,” Hemingway writes.
This impassioned response to the disaster in 1935 still resonates. Hemingway recognized that while storms are inevitable, mass casualties do not have to be. The government can’t control the weather, but it can fulfill an obligation to protect the most vulnerable in the path of the storm.
Verna Kale works for the Hemingway Letters Project, which has been made possible in part by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Democracy demands wisdom.
Come rain or shine, Patrick A. Njok, has been ensuring patients in need of essential medical care get to the hospital in time for two years as a driver with Médecins Sans Frontières. Patrick manoeuvres across remote and rural terrain in the Cross River region of southern Nigeria, an area where many communities, including an estimated 15,000 refugees from Cameroon, do not have clean water or phone service.
“I’m a driver by profession and I love the job. The primary aspect of my job is to drive emergency patients from the MSF facility to the referral hospital.”
While people can receive basic healthcare at MSF’s facilities in the area, more serious cases need to be referred to hospitals in the area. That is where Patrick comes in, bringing patients to hospital no matter the obstacles on the road. He shares four challenges he often overcomes on his journeys.
1. Fallen trees
When rainy season comes, there are windstorms, and these knock down the trees. It can happen suddenly, even when you are already out on the road. The rain can come at any time.
If you don’t take a machete, a cutlass, or a chainsaw with you, you can end up getting blocked by the fallen trees until the villagers can help you remove them. This can seriously delay patients getting to hospitals, which can have potentially life-threatening consequences.
An MSF truck drives through mud carrying staff to the healthcare facility we are supporting at Old Ndebeji and Akor communities in Akamkpa local government areas of Cross River. Nigeria, April 2024.
2. Muddy roads
From May to October, when it is raining very heavily, the soil texture is very difficult to drive on. Hilly, muddy and slippery. I know some of my colleagues who have spent almost half of the day trying to dig out the car when we get stuck.
Even the off-road vehicles we use sometimes struggle in the mud and you become stuck, wheels spinning but not moving anywhere! We have to make sure all cars come with all-terrain tires and an electrical winch so that the driver can get himself out.
A side view of a broken bridge at Oban community in Akamkpa local government area of Cross River state. People from the community are using bags of sand and wood to temporarily fix the road so that motorists can pass. Nigeria, April 2024.
3. Broken bridges
Just today, two bridges have collapsed. These bridges were constructed in 1973, when I was still in primary school. To this date, those bridges are still the same ones we are driving over now.
These are simple wooden bridges, and you have vehicles that are crossing with a load of more than 30 tonnes. Sometimes when we drive over these delicate bridges, all the passengers have to get out and walk across to reduce weight.”
An MSF truck crosses a wooden bridge without passengers inside to reduce weight. Nigeria, April 2024.
4. High cost of transportation
In the rainy season, the price of taxis and transportation goes up. It can be around four times more. If people don’t come to the clinic, then we cannot refer them, and I cannot drive them to other hospitals.
Drivers are often the number one advertiser for MSF, the vehicle is the first thing people see. I would encourage people to go to the MSF clinic. If you are sick, you come to the facility and MSF will treat you.
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Iranian authorities must stop the imminent scheduled execution of Mohammad Reza Azizi, a 21-year-old man, who was a 17-year-old child at the time of offence. Amnesty International has learned that the Iranian authorities plan to carry out his execution on Monday, 21 October 2024 in Shiraz, Fars province. His death sentence and planned execution contravene international law which strictly prohibits the imposition of the death penalty against individuals who were under 18 at the time of the alleged crime.
In response, Sara Hashash, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, said:
“The planned execution of Mohammed Reza Azizi puts on full display the Iranian authorities’ cruelty. Their repeated flagrant disregard for the right to life is an abhorrent assault on children’s rights. Using the death penalty against someone who was a child at the time of the crime is prohibited under international human rights and customary law and violates Iran’s international obligations.
“Mohammed Reza Azizi’s rights to a fair trial were violated, including by being interrogated without a lawyer and the court relying on his coerced ‘confessions’ as evidence to convict and sentence him to death. His execution would amount to arbitrary deprivation of life.
“The Iranian authorities must immediately halt Mohammad Reza Azizi’s execution, quash his conviction and sentence, and grant him a fair retrial in full compliance with the principles of juvenile justice and international standards and without resorting to the death penalty. The international community, including UN bodies and the EU and its member states, must urgently intervene to save this young man’s life.”
President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. met today with Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany at the Chancellery to discuss the longstanding U.S.-German relationship, grounded in our shared democratic values. The two leaders coordinated on support for Ukraine in its self-defense against Russian aggression; efforts to counter antisemitism and other forms of hate at home and abroad; the Middle East; amongst other global issues. President Biden expressed his appreciation for Chancellor Scholz’s leadership in increasing Germany’s investment in NATO’s collective defense and in securing the release of wrongfully detained Americans, along with other human rights activists and political dissidents from Russian prison, earlier this year. He also underscored the U.S. commitment to continue working together to address the challenges of today and tomorrow and deliver results for both our peoples.
MILES AXLE Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering – Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering – Svyatoslav Fedorov, Ekaterina Voznyak, Dmitry Ulrikh, Galina Tokunova, Sergey Mikhailov, Svetlana Golovina, Wang Jing, Elizaveta Druzhinina, Xing Yan, Zhang Jianguo and Ho Songtao
A delegation from Henan University of Urban Development (PRC), a long-term partner of our university, paid a friendly visit to SPbGASU. During the meeting, the parties discussed solutions to specific issues of cooperation and prospects for its development.
The delegation of Henan University of Architecture and Civil Engineering included Vice President of the University Wang Jing, Director of the Institute of Architectural Research Zhang Jianguo, Dean of the Faculty of Management Ho Songtao, Dean of the Faculty of Architecture and Urban Planning Xing Yan. The meeting was attended by the First Vice-Rector Svetlana Golovina, Vice-Rector for Educational Activities Sergey Mikhailov, Vice-Rector for Economics and Finance Elizaveta Druzhinina, Dean of the Faculty of Architecture Ekaterina Voznyak, Dean of the Faculty of Economics and Management Galina Tokunova, Dean of the Faculty of Environmental Engineering and Urban Economy Dmitry Ulrikh, Head of the Department of Water Use and Ecology Svyatoslav Fedorov, Head of the International Activities Department Shuainat Akhmadulaeva.
Svetlana Golovina emphasized that today, universities and academic institutions in China are beacons of advanced knowledge, scientific discoveries and high-quality education. They not only make a significant contribution to the rapid development of their country, but have also become an integral and important part of the global academic community.
“Our university traditionally pays great attention to the implementation of scientific and educational projects with universities in China. Since 2017, the most dynamically developing relations are with Henan University of Urban Development. This cooperation includes a wide range of areas, the implementation of joint educational programs, academic exchange of teachers and students, holding joint summer schools, implementing scientific and technical developments, holding scientific and practical conferences, expanding the laboratory base and publishing activities. Over the past year alone, more than 70 of our students have become familiar with the history, culture, and system of professional education of China as part of the academic mobility program. Currently, ten students from Henan University are on an exchange program at our university,” noted Svetlana Golovina.
The First Vice-Rector added that since 2020, SPbGASU has been participating in the implementation of an educational program for training bachelors in the water supply and sanitation program, financed by the Chinese side. Up to 20 teachers from seven departments of our university took part in this work annually. And today there is an opportunity and need to discuss the further course of implementation of this project.
Wang Jing shares a similar opinion. The Vice President recalled that the history of cooperation between our countries and universities has a long history. Since the Soviet period, both countries have cooperated in various urban development and architectural projects.
“Today, our cooperation is developing at the management level, and the ties between the teaching staff and students are strengthening. This is important. Our universities have many similar educational programs: architecture, urban planning, engineering ecology, water management. We support the policy of openness, develop international cooperation, and SPbGASU has become our closest partner. The current meeting will help strengthen our diverse cooperation, including in organizing the educational process,” said Wang Jing.
Currently, 37 students from Henan University of Urban Planning are studying at SPbGASU, including 22 master’s students and 15 postgraduates. As was emphasized by the parties, such successful experience needs to be expanded in different directions. Ekaterina Voznyak gave examples of active cooperation development. Thus, students from both universities took part in the architectural competition “ArchConcept”, the Chinese-Russian competition “The Future is Coming!” Also, students from SPbGASU completed an internship at Henan University of Urban Planning.
The delegation from China was also interested in the Faculty of Economics and Management of SPbGASU, whose activities were introduced by Galina Tokunova.
“We highly value our partnership and are confident that through joint efforts we will strengthen the ties between our universities,” summed up Svetlana Golovina.
During their stay at SPbGASU, the delegation visited the historical information center, the testing center, the architectural faculty, the department of heat and gas supply and ventilation, and an exhibition of works by Chinese and Soviet scientists in the field of architectural and construction art (mid-second half of the 20th century) in the scientific and technical library.
Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Please note; This information is raw content directly from the information source. It is accurate to what the source is stating and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
An event was held at Tŷ William Morgan in Cardiff to mark the 60 years of the creation of the Secretary of State for Wales in 1964.
From left to right: David TC Davies, Lord Hain, Welsh Secretary Jo Stevens, Alun Michael and Lord Murphy.
The Welsh Secretary has said the Wales Office will be a “dedicated champion for our nation at the Cabinet Table” as the department marked its 60th anniversary.
Jo Stevens said she aimed to reinvigorate the Wales Office on her appointment and had already “forged a new partnership” with Welsh Government as well as beginning to deliver some of the UK Government’s key priorities.
On Thursday 17 October, an event was held at Ty William Morgan in Cardiff, one of the Wales Office’s two bases along with Gwydyr House in London, to mark the 60th anniversary of the creation of the Secretary of State for Wales in 1964.
Speaking at the event, Welsh Secretary Jo Stevens said:
The Wales Office exists as a dedicated champion for our nation and I believe it is critical that Wales has its voice at the Cabinet table, steadfastly advocating on behalf of our country. This is a legacy I will continue to champion and strengthen.
But I want to go further and faster in strengthening the voice and the impact of the Wales Office across government and in the experiences of people across Wales.
When I came into office in July, I set out my plans to reinvigorate the Wales Office and set a clear vision for its future.
The last decade has been characterised by a fractious relationship between Welsh and UK Governments and as a first act, we have fundamentally reset the relationship between the Welsh and UK governments.
The First Minister and I are forging a new partnership, based on trust, respect for devolution, cooperation, and delivery. That is the bedrock on which everything else is built.”
The Welsh Secretary added that as well as reforming the Wales Office she has begun to deliver on the priorities set out on her appointment to the post.
Since July in Wales, announcements have included:
A better deal with Tata Steel that secures the immediate future of Port Talbot steelworks, lays the foundations for future investment and enhances protections for the workforce in Port Talbot, Llanwern, Trostre and Shotton.
£13.5m released from the Port Talbot Transition Board to support the community and supply chain.
Major inward investment successes with Eren Holdings and Kellanova making huge investments in North East Wales which will deliver hundreds of good jobs.
A boost to the number of trains running on the North Wales mainline by 50%, announced alongside the Welsh Government.
Creation of the publicly-owned GB Energy, unleashing the potential we have for clean power in Wales from new nuclear in Ynys Mon, to floating offshore wind in the Celtic Sea. Seven Welsh tidal stream, solar and offshore wind projects across the country were successful in securing contracts earlier this year.
A new partnership between the UK and Welsh governments to drive down NHS waiting lists on both sides of the border.
Welsh Secretary Jo Stevens said:
Our new Wales Office will be bolder, more influential and set a positive vision for our nation, once again playing a central role in improving people’s day-to-day lives whatever their background and wherever they live.
We will work across the two governments to deliver economic stability and growth, clean power by 2030, border security and safer streets and public services fit for the future.
We will deliver on our missions for government, for and on behalf of the people of Wales.”
The post of Secretary of State for Wales came into existence on 17 October 1964 with Llanelli MP Jim Griffiths the first to hold the position.
When the National Assembly for Wales was established in 1999, the new Wales Office replaced the Welsh Office to carry out the remaining functions of the Secretary of State for Wales.
Jo Stevens MP was appointed the 22nd holder of the post following the 4 July General Election this year. She became the first woman from the Labour Party to hold the position.
Guests at Thursday’s 60th anniversary event included a number of previous Welsh Secretaries, members of public and uniformed services and figures from Welsh public life. Exhibits from the history of the department, provided by the National Library of Wales, were also on display.
MILES AXLE Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: State University of Management – Official website of the State –
The Project Office of the Department of Acceleration Programs and Project-Based Learning of the State University of Management reports on innovations in the organization of project-based learning processes, mandatory for 1st-3rd year full-time undergraduate students.
This academic year, within the framework of project-based learning, thematic events of the project day were organized within the framework of the functioning of the Project-based Learning Support Clubs, organized by all departments of the State University of Management, as well as within the framework of the activities of the structural divisions of the State University of Management participating in the implementation of project-based learning (Project Mentoring Center, Business Accelerator, Business Incubator, and others).
To participate in the Project Day events, you now need to join the Project-Based Learning at GUU community on the MakeEvents platform (unified login data with the BusinessChain platform). It will have an event calendar available, registration for events will be conducted, and attendance at Project Day events will be monitored.
In order for all data to be loaded correctly and you to avoid problems with accounting for event attendance, each 1st-3rd year undergraduate student is required to register (if not already done) and fill out a personal profile in strict accordance with the registration instructions. For other students – optional.
At the end of each event, check your attendance record.
We remind you that the choice of events for participation is voluntary and should be based on personal preferences and the direction of your own project activities. However, within the framework of the discipline “Project Work” all students are required to attend at least 10 project day events per semester.
All events held during the project day are held with the aim of sharing experience, discussing current issues and trends in the field of project management and contribute to the development of students’ universal, professional and project competencies.
Subscribe to the TG channel “Our GUU” Date of publication: 10/18/2024
Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Please note; This information is raw content directly from the information source. It is accurate to what the source is stating and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
George Washington assumed the role of the U.S. Navy’s only forward-deployed carrier, replacing USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76), which operated out of Yokosuka for nearly nine years before departing Japan in May.
“USS George Washington departed San Diego to begin the final phase of its redeployment to Japan, where it will once again serve as the Navy’s forward-deployed aircraft carrier,” said Rear Adm. Greg Newkirk, commander of Carrier Strike Group 5. “It will take up station alongside the always-ready forces postured in the area of responsibility. George Washington, with all its capabilities, represents America’s commitment to stability in the region where it will sail and fly with our partner navies as we strive to move from interoperability to true interchangeability.”
George Washington completed its midlife refueling and complex overhaul (RCOH) at Newport News Shipbuilding in May 2023, conducted pre-deployment certifications and inspections over the course of 10 months, and departed Norfolk, Virginia, in April for its Southern Seas deployment around South America, arriving in San Diego in July.
The forward-deployed Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 5, which recently completed training at Naval Air Station Fallon in Nevada, will embark George Washington to transit the Pacific Ocean and return to Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni in Japan.
“I am incredibly proud of this team and everything they have accomplished this year,” said Capt. Timothy Waits, commanding officer of George Washington. “This crew, alongside Carrier Air Wing 5, is trained, tested, and ready to return to 7th Fleet as the Navy’s premier forward-deployed aircraft carrier.”
This marks the second time that George Washington has served as the Forward-Deployed Naval Forces-Japan aircraft carrier. In 2008, it became the first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to be forward-deployed to Japan before being relieved by Ronald Reagan in 2015.
After operating in the U.S. 3rd Fleet and 7th Fleet areas of operations, George Washington will arrive in Yokosuka in late fall.
The Saint-Quentin RCMP is seeking the public’s help locating a stolen enclosed utility trailer in Saint-Quentin, N.B.
The theft is believed to have occurred sometime in the overnight hours of October 11, 2024, at an open field near Highway 17 in Saint-Quentin.
The enclosed utility trailer is described as a black 2016 Haulmark, model number GR85X16WT4, with New Brunswick licence plate TPL 847, and vehicle identification number 575GB1626GP315877. A photo is currently unavailable.
If you have seen the enclosed utility trailer since October 11, or if you have information that could help further the investigation, please contact the Saint-Quentin RCMP at 506-235-2149.Information can also be provided anonymously through Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), by downloading the secure P3 Mobile App, or by Secure Web Tips athttp://www.crimenb.ca.
A man has been found guilty of murder after detectives trawled through hours of CCTV and forensically linked him to the blood trail at the scene.
Kyiza Sandiford, 24, (19.9.00), of Merton, was found guilty of the murder of 22-year-old Keelen Wong following a trial at the Old Bailey on Thursday, 17 October.
Detective Inspector Kevin Martin, from the Met’s Specialist Crime Command, said: “Today our thoughts are with the Keelen’s family and friends as his attacker was held to account for his murder.
“While nothing can truly assuage the pain of their loss, I hope today’s conviction allows them to hold on to his memory knowing his killer has been brought to justice.
“This awful attack took place in broad daylight, in front of people simply going about their business. An innocent young man lost his life to a large knife and this deeply shocked the community at the time.
“The brutal attack on Keelen was a terrible act of senseless violence. The investigation team and other specialist officers worked tirelessly to secure this conviction, trawling through hours of CCTV in order to follow the defendant’s footsteps.
“Today shows that the Met remains deeply committed to pursuing and prosecuting those who are willing to commit acts of violence on the streets of London. “
Police were called at 16:44hrs on Tuesday, 3 October 2023 to reports of a stabbing at Coldharbour Lane, Brixton.
Officers and the London Ambulance Service attended and Keelen was found with a knife injury. Despite the best efforts of the emergency services, he died at the scene.
Extensive CCTV trawls were carried out to locate Sandiford, who had injured himself with his own blade, causing a blood trail at the scene.
Following Sandiford’s self-admission to hospital, police were able to link the two together.
When questioned about his injuries, Sandiford stated that it was from punching a window, but police forensically linked his blood to the trail at the scene. The blood was then also linked to a recovered sheath at the crime scene.
Following this discovery, Sandiford was arrested the day after the murder on Wednesday, 4 October 2023 and he was subsequently charged.
Two teenage defendants were both found not guilty of the murder but one, aged 16, was found guilty of possession of an offensive weapon.
The teenager and Sandiford will be sentenced at the same court on Friday, 22 November.
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Scott Lucas, Professor of International Politics, Clinton Institute, University College Dublin
Israel has announced it has killed Hamas military leader Yahya Sinwar in Gaza. Sinwar was apparently killed in a chance encounter on October 16 after a tank unit opened fire on a group of Palestinian men running into a building in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. His body was found in the rubble and later identified as the Hamas leader.
It’s an important moment in the conflict between Israel and Hamas. Sinwar’s death follows a campaign of assassination of top Hamas leaders by Israel since the latest round of hostilities began after the Hamas attack on Israel of October 7 2023.
Middle East analyst Scott Lucas of University College Dublin addresses some of the key issues raised by Sinwar’s killing.
How badly Sinwar’s death hit Hamas’s command structure?
Just over a year after its mass October 7 killings inside Israel, overseen by Yahya Sinwar, Hamas as an organisation is in disarray. It is not just the killing of Sinwar in the chance encounter with Israeli forces in Rafah. Sinwar’s death adds to a lengthy roll call of top Hamas leaders during the past year.
Principally, this includes Mohammed Deif, who planned the October 7 attacks, and Hamas’s political leader Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed in Beirut on July 31. These three are just the most prominent identities among a host of other senior officials and military commanders killed by Israel in Gaza or Lebanon.
Sinwar’s younger brother, Mohammed, 49, is likely to take over military command. And veteran figures such as Khaled Meshaal – who led Hamas’s political bureau from 1996 to 2017 – remain. But they will struggle to sustain the organisation, particularly if the Israeli government presses its military advantage and continues to identify and assassinate Hamas’s high command.
But that does not mean that Hamas as a movement is finished. Mass killing, even of its leaders, could galvanise it in the longer run. Those who survive will move up through the ranks, and the spirit of resistance and resentment could bring in more recruits.
Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, can claim “victory” over Sinwar, Haniyeh and Deif. But victory over Hamas, particularly if Israel pursues an open-ended occupation in Gaza, may not be assured.
What did Sinwar represent as a symbol of Palestinian resistance?
For many in Palestine and beyond, Sinwar will be hailed as a martyr and icon of resistance. He was with Hamas from its first years, spent 22 years in an Israeli prison, and took command in Gaza from 2017. He never wavered in his belief that Hamas would prevail over Israel’s blockade, detentions, and military operations.
But for others, Sinwar may be remembered as a divisive, even cruel figure. He built his career in Hamas on the killing of supposed “collaborators” with Israel. He was suspected of the torture and execution of rivals. And his leadership of the October 7 mass killings may be recalled as “resistance” which needlessly sacrificed the lives of tens of thousands and displaced almost 2 million of those whom he was supposedly representing.
Does his death clear the way for a younger generation more amenable to a ceasefire deal and the return of the hostages?
It will take months, perhaps years before we see where that “younger generation” will take Hamas. In the meantime, the interim political and military command of the battered organisation will face their immediate challenge. Can they still get some return, such as the freeing of Palestinians from Israeli prisons and the continued presence of Hamas in Gaza, in exchange for the release of the hostages? Or do they have to accept capitulation, possible expulsion, and Israeli occupation?
Barring an unexpected change in the US position, putting pressure on Netanyahu, all the cards are in Israel’s hand for now.
What’s Israel’s next move?
Ask Netanyahu. He has the option of proclaiming “mission accomplished”. However, that will not be true for many Israelis as long as the hostages are not returned. Without that resolution, Netanyahu will run the risk of losing power if forced to an election and even the resumption of court proceedings over bribery charges if he halts military operations.
Israel’s expansion of the war into Lebanon has improved his position to an extent. It has reconciled him with the defense minister, Yoav Gallant, who was privately saying Israel had no “endgame” in Gaza. And it has improved his approval ratings.
So it remains in his interest to continue hostilities in both Gaza and Lebanon. And indeed Netanyahu has signalled his intention to press on. But he has also said that while it is not the end, it is “the beginning of the end”.
While Netanyahu may pay lip service to the resumption of ceasefire talks, that will likely be conditional on the expulsion of Hamas from Gaza. And with no clear alternative for governance in the Strip, that points – as with the West Bank – to indefinite Israeli occupation.
With the decimation of its Hamas and Hezbollah allies, Iran’s regime appears to have no good options at present. Amid economic and political problems at home and outmatched by Israel in military capabilities, the regime has avoided direct confrontation.
Iran could continue to pursue “indirect” war through militias in Iraq and Syria attacking US personnel with rockets and drones, or with Yemen’s Houthis lobbing missiles at Israel and again threatening Red Sea shipping. It could expand cyber-attacks and its own attempted assassinations abroad.
But those options would have little immediate effect, and would risk retaliation from the US and further isolation in the international community. The US is already using B-2 stealth bombers to attack Houthi bases in Yemen.
So for now, Iran’s leaders and their spokespeople are likely to take the political route, condemning Israel and proclaiming that the “axis of resistance” will be strengthened through its losses.
Can Washington now pressure Israel to do a deal with the Palestinians?
This is perhaps the easiest question to answer. Unless the US cuts military aid to Israel or comes out for an unconditional ceasefire, it has little if any leverage with Netanyahu.
How does this affect the US election campaign?
Foreign policy is rarely a priority for most US voters, and even the mass killing of the past year is unlikely to change that. But on the margins of the US presidential election, the escalating toll in Gaza and Lebanon could alienate Arab American voters from the Democrats in Michigan, one of the seven states that will decide the contest.
More broadly, the impression of Netanyahu pushing around a “weak” Biden administration could take hold. And in a toss-up election, those margins could be decisive.
Scott Lucas does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Partners gather at Guildhall for Climate Action conference
18 October 2024
Some of the leading voices in the campaign for Sustainability and Climate Action gathered this week at the Guildhall for the Derry and Strabane Sustainability and Climate Commission Launch and Community Showcase 2024 Event.
The event marked the official launch of the Derry & Strabane Sustainability and Climate Commission, a significant cross-sectoral partnership dedicated to working together to identify solutions that meet the climate and ecological needs of the City and District, as well as the broader region.
Established in January 2024, the Commission is the second of its kind in N. Ireland and members stem from Northern Ireland government departments, agencies, communities, education, and business.
Mayor of Derry and Strabane, Councillor Lilian Seenoi Barr opened the event, reaffirming Derry City and Strabane District Council’s commitment to working with local partners to address the climate and ecological crisis. “I was delighted to see so many organisations represented at today’s conference, and the shared commitment to pioneering cross-sectoral sustainability and climate action,” she declared. “As a Council we have been working to deliver our Climate Pledge towards a net zero, climate resilient City & District by 2045, but we recognise that we need to work collaboratively with everyone to turn this ambition into action. In order to bring about impactful and sustainable change on a scale that will really protect and preserve our natural environment and local communities, it’s essential that we work together and draw on the expertise and resources of a wide range of partners,” she stressed.
The Derry and Strabane Sustainability and Climate Commission chair Professor Ian Montgomery from Ulster University said: “Climate change is the greatest threat facing humanity, with the last ten years being the warmest on record, with shifting weather patterns causing difficulties worldwide. It is incumbent on all of us as world citizens to cutting our carbon emissions and playing our part in saving our planet – the only home we’ve ever known. Derry City and Strabane District Council have shown great leadership in bringing together stakeholders from many sectors to debate and plan how their Climate Commission can take a leading role in positive climate action for all their citizens.”
Climate Programme Manager with Council, who hosted the event, Cathy Burns, said afterwards: “The conference provided an opportunity to unite national leaders, policymakers, industry experts, and community leaders to address the pressing challenges presented by the climate and ecological crisis. There is recognition by all our partners that we urgently need to address issues of sustainability, biodiversity loss, greenhouse gas emissions and the preservation of our natural environment for the betterment of all our communities. We had the chance to look at some of the fantastic work already ongoing across Derry and Strabane and to hear from some of the leading voices on pioneering climate and sustainability strategies.
“We are now calling on our communities, businesses, public sector and education to get involved and be part of the dialogue. We need to work in partnership to find solutions and create a better future for all.”
Wrapping up a two-day visit to Somalia, the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, Rosemary DiCarlo, today reaffirmed the world body’s support for the country’s peace- and state-building.
“The UN has been a longstanding partner to Somalia and remains steadfast in its commitment to supporting the Somali government and its people,” Ms. DiCarlo said.
“Together, we aim to build on the commendable achievements and priorities agreed upon to address key development challenges facing the country – we stand ready to work alongside the Federal Government of Somalia to accomplish this,” she added.
While in the Somali capital, Ms. DiCarlo met with President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and senior members of his team for wide-ranging discussions, in addition to meeting with representatives of civil society.
In her meeting with the President, Ms. DiCarlo noted Somalia’s many achievements in the past year, including debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative, the accession to the East African Community, and the lifting of the arms embargo.
Looking forward, she offered her congratulations on Somalia taking up a seat on the UN Security Council in 2025-26. She also underscored the commitment of the UN to continue to support Somalia in the period ahead and to work closely on the proposed transition of UNSOM.
While in Mogadishu, the Under-Secretary-General met with the Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission for Somalia and Head of the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS), Ambassador Mohammed El-Amine Souef. They discussed ATMIS’s upcoming transition to the African Union Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM) on 1 January 2025. She also met with international partners/the diplomatic community in Mogadishu for wide-ranging discussions.
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Scott Lucas, Professor of International Politics, Clinton Institute, University College Dublin
Israel has announced it has killed Hamas military leader Yahya Sinwar in Gaza. Sinwar was apparently killed in a chance encounter on October 16 after a tank unit opened fire on a group of Palestinian men running into a building in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. His body was found in the rubble and later identified as the Hamas leader.
It’s an important moment in the conflict between Israel and Hamas. Sinwar’s death follows a campaign of assassination of top Hamas leaders by Israel since the latest round of hostilities began after the Hamas attack on Israel of October 7 2023.
Middle East analyst Scott Lucas of University College Dublin addresses some of the key issues raised by Sinwar’s killing.
How badly Sinwar’s death hit Hamas’s command structure?
Just over a year after its mass October 7 killings inside Israel, overseen by Yahya Sinwar, Hamas as an organisation is in disarray. It is not just the killing of Sinwar in the chance encounter with Israeli forces in Rafah. Sinwar’s death adds to a lengthy roll call of top Hamas leaders during the past year.
Principally, this includes Mohammed Deif, who planned the October 7 attacks, and Hamas’s political leader Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed in Beirut on July 31. These three are just the most prominent identities among a host of other senior officials and military commanders killed by Israel in Gaza or Lebanon.
Sinwar’s younger brother, Mohammed, 49, is likely to take over military command. And veteran figures such as Khaled Meshaal – who led Hamas’s political bureau from 1996 to 2017 – remain. But they will struggle to sustain the organisation, particularly if the Israeli government presses its military advantage and continues to identify and assassinate Hamas’s high command.
But that does not mean that Hamas as a movement is finished. Mass killing, even of its leaders, could galvanise it in the longer run. Those who survive will move up through the ranks, and the spirit of resistance and resentment could bring in more recruits.
Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, can claim “victory” over Sinwar, Haniyeh and Deif. But victory over Hamas, particularly if Israel pursues an open-ended occupation in Gaza, may not be assured.
What did Sinwar represent as a symbol of Palestinian resistance?
For many in Palestine and beyond, Sinwar will be hailed as a martyr and icon of resistance. He was with Hamas from its first years, spent 22 years in an Israeli prison, and took command in Gaza from 2017. He never wavered in his belief that Hamas would prevail over Israel’s blockade, detentions, and military operations.
But for others, Sinwar may be remembered as a divisive, even cruel figure. He built his career in Hamas on the killing of supposed “collaborators” with Israel. He was suspected of the torture and execution of rivals. And his leadership of the October 7 mass killings may be recalled as “resistance” which needlessly sacrificed the lives of tens of thousands and displaced almost 2 million of those whom he was supposedly representing.
Does his death clear the way for a younger generation more amenable to a ceasefire deal and the return of the hostages?
It will take months, perhaps years before we see where that “younger generation” will take Hamas. In the meantime, the interim political and military command of the battered organisation will face their immediate challenge. Can they still get some return, such as the freeing of Palestinians from Israeli prisons and the continued presence of Hamas in Gaza, in exchange for the release of the hostages? Or do they have to accept capitulation, possible expulsion, and Israeli occupation?
Barring an unexpected change in the US position, putting pressure on Netanyahu, all the cards are in Israel’s hand for now.
What’s Israel’s next move?
Ask Netanyahu. He has the option of proclaiming “mission accomplished”. However, that will not be true for many Israelis as long as the hostages are not returned. Without that resolution, Netanyahu will run the risk of losing power if forced to an election and even the resumption of court proceedings over bribery charges if he halts military operations.
Israel’s expansion of the war into Lebanon has improved his position to an extent. It has reconciled him with the defense minister, Yoav Gallant, who was privately saying Israel had no “endgame” in Gaza. And it has improved his approval ratings.
So it remains in his interest to continue hostilities in both Gaza and Lebanon. And indeed Netanyahu has signalled his intention to press on. But he has also said that while it is not the end, it is “the beginning of the end”.
While Netanyahu may pay lip service to the resumption of ceasefire talks, that will likely be conditional on the expulsion of Hamas from Gaza. And with no clear alternative for governance in the Strip, that points – as with the West Bank – to indefinite Israeli occupation.
With the decimation of its Hamas and Hezbollah allies, Iran’s regime appears to have no good options at present. Amid economic and political problems at home and outmatched by Israel in military capabilities, the regime has avoided direct confrontation.
Iran could continue to pursue “indirect” war through militias in Iraq and Syria attacking US personnel with rockets and drones, or with Yemen’s Houthis lobbing missiles at Israel and again threatening Red Sea shipping. It could expand cyber-attacks and its own attempted assassinations abroad.
But those options would have little immediate effect, and would risk retaliation from the US and further isolation in the international community. The US is already using B-2 stealth bombers to attack Houthi bases in Yemen.
So for now, Iran’s leaders and their spokespeople are likely to take the political route, condemning Israel and proclaiming that the “axis of resistance” will be strengthened through its losses.
Can Washington now pressure Israel to do a deal with the Palestinians?
This is perhaps the easiest question to answer. Unless the US cuts military aid to Israel or comes out for an unconditional ceasefire, it has little if any leverage with Netanyahu.
How does this affect the US election campaign?
Foreign policy is rarely a priority for most US voters, and even the mass killing of the past year is unlikely to change that. But on the margins of the US presidential election, the escalating toll in Gaza and Lebanon could alienate Arab American voters from the Democrats in Michigan, one of the seven states that will decide the contest.
More broadly, the impression of Netanyahu pushing around a “weak” Biden administration could take hold. And in a toss-up election, those margins could be decisive.
Scott Lucas does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Statement from the Leader of the Council, Councillor Adam Hug on Friday 18 October.
National Hate Crime Awareness Week is more pertinent than ever following the appalling events seen during the summer, which again highlighted the shameful prevalence of hate crimes. Politicians have a responsibility to promote cohesion rather than sow division and inflame tensions. We must challenge hateful sentiment head on, in order to ensure that such scenes do not occur again.
The week ahead is an important opportunity to show solidarity with those affected by hate crime, and to underline the ambition to rid society of prejudice and discrimination. I am proud to be standing alongside many local government colleagues and leaders across the UK in support of this campaign.
My hope is for Westminster to be a City where everyone feels welcome, regardless of ethnicity, race, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion or disability. I am proud that it is home to people from across the world as well hosting, in Soho, a historic and symbolic home for the UK’s LGBTQ+ community. Everyone who lives, works and studies here should feel able to live without fear.
I would like to encourage people who are subjected to, or witness harmful or hateful incidents in the borough, to report it to the Police and seek help from our community partners. The impacts of hate crime can be devastating and we are here to offer support where possible to victims, their families and loved ones. This council will continue to celebrate our diverse communities and our differences, as well as those things that unite us. We will always strive to improve the support our communities receive. There is not, and never will be, a place for hate in Westminster.
The latest stage of the Southsea Coastal Scheme will get underway between Blue Reef Aquarium and the Hovertravel terminal on Monday 21 October, with the area due to reopen in summer 2026.
During construction, Clarence Esplanade and the promenade and road will be closed and a diversion route will be in place for pedestrians and road users. A temporary footpath across Southsea Common, behind the Naval War Memorial, has been constructed to provide pedestrian access along the area during construction.
Nearby businesses including the Blue Reef Aquarium, Hovertravel and Clarence Pier will remain open, but The Beach Club and Southsea Rowing Club will close. The Rowing Club has been relocated to a temporary building in Pier Road.
Cllr Steve Pitt, Leader of Portsmouth City Council, said:
“The temporary closure of this area is necessary for building essential sea defences to protect Portsmouth for the next 100 years.
“The coastal team has worked hard to ensure that access around the area is as smooth as possible and, in particular, putting measures in place at the Naval War Memorial.
“Looking forward, we’ve identified Serpentine Square as a great location for placing artwork along the seafront so that will be an exciting future project for local artists to get involved in.”
Guy Mason, Project Director of the Southsea Coastal Scheme, added:
“I’d like to thank the public for their patience as we work to improve the seafront area alongside building the sea defence.
“Looking at the completed areas around Long Curtain Moat and Southsea Castle, it’s clear that we have vastly enhanced the features along the seafront and, as a result, seen increased visitors to the areas. We’re looking forward to doing the same at this already imposing section of the seafront.”
Once reopened, visitors to the section of seafront between Blue Reef Aquarium and Hovertravel can expect to see several changes for the better, including:
A one-way road system (westbound) with a single carriageway and a reduction in speed limit from 30mph to 20mph.
A 3m wide two-way cycle lane running alongside the promenade, segregated from carparking by a 2m buffer strip.
An 8m wide promenade in most areas.
Grade II listed memorials placed centrally along the promenade to create a ‘memorial walk’.
Coastal planted terraces, play areas, new lighting and seating.
In December 2024, the coastal defences phase between the Pyramids and Speakers’ Corner is scheduled to open.
The entire scheme is due for completion in early 2029.
The Portsmouth City Council project is the largest local authority led flood defence scheme in the UK, worth £180m.
Mr Michael Tatham CMG has been appointed British High Commissioner to the Republic of Cyprus in succession to Mr Irfan Siddiq OBE
Mr Michael Tatham CMG has been appointed British High Commissioner to the Republic of Cyprus in succession to Mr Irfan Siddiq OBE who will be transferring to another Diplomatic Service appointment. Mr Tatham will take up his appointment during November 2024.
Curriculum vitae
Full name: Michael Harry Tatham
2023 to 2024
FCDO, Delivery Director European Political Community Summit
2018 to 2022
Washington DC, Deputy Head of Mission (Chargé d’Affaires, 2019-20)
2015 to 2017
FCO, Director Eastern Europe and Central Asia
2011 to 2015
UK Mission to the United Nations, New York, Political Counsellor
2008 to 2011
Sarajevo, Her Majesty’s Ambassador
2006 to 2008
FCO, Head of Western Balkans Department
2002 to 2005
Prague, Deputy Head of Mission
1999 to 2002
10 Downing Street, Private Secretary (Foreign Affairs) to the Prime Minister
1997 to 1999
Sofia, Deputy Head of Mission
1995 to 1996
FCO, Private Secretary to Minister for Europe
1995
FCO, Head of East Mediterranean Section, Southern European Department
1993 to 1995
FCO, European Union Department (Internal)
1989 to 1993
Prague, Third later Second Secretary (Political/Press)
1987 to 1988
FCO, Namibia Desk Officer, Southern African Department
Responding to the arrest of Zambian journalist Thomas Allan Zgambo in Lusaka, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for East and Southern Africa, Vongai Chikwanda, said:
“Zambian authorities must immediately and unconditionally release journalist Thomas Allan Zgambo and stop targeting him simply for doing his job.
Journalism is not a crime. In fact, Zambia’s Constitution guarantees the right to freedom of expression and media freedom.
Vongai Chikwanda, Amnesty International Deputy Regional Director for East and Southern Africa
“Journalism is not a crime. In fact, Zambia’s Constitution guarantees the right to freedom of expression and media freedom. Authorities must uphold their constitutional and international human rights obligations and allow journalists to freely carry out their work.”
Secretary for Health Prof Lo Chung-mau led a delegation to Shenzhen today to meet health officials of Guangdong Province and Shenzhen Municipality.
He met Health Commission of Guangdong Province Deputy Director-General Deng Linfeng, Guangdong Provincial Medical Products Administration Deputy Commissioner Wang Ling and Public Hygiene & Health Commission of Shenzhen Municipality Deputy Director Li Chuang.
Prof Lo introduced to them the initiatives on developing Hong Kong into an international health and medical innovation hub and aspects of deepening medical collaboration in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), as set out in the 2024 Policy Address.
The health chief noted that the Resolution of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee on Further Deepening Reform Comprehensively to Advance Chinese Modernization adopted by the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee mentions further reform of the medical and healthcare systems and support for the development of innovative drugs and medical devices.
The Development Plan for Shenzhen Park of Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science & Technology Innovation Co-operation promulgated by the State Council put forward the synergistic development of Shenzhen and Hong Kong under the “one zone, two park” model, expressing clear support for the innovative application of advanced biomedicine technologies by capitalising on the role of the GBA International Clinical Trial Centre, he added.
“The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government is determined to leverage the advantages of ‘one country, two systems’ and Hong Kong’s healthcare professional system to develop Hong Kong into an international health and medical innovation hub to expedite patients’ access to advanced diagnostic and treatment services, and promote the development of the biomedicine research and development industry, while actively integrating into the national development by showing support for fostering new quality productive forces in biomedical technology, as set out in the aforesaid resolution and the development plan.”
During the meeting, various medical collaboration initiatives in the GBA such as expanding cross-boundary health record sharing, promoting specialist training in the bay area and extending the Elderly Health Care Voucher GBA Pilot Scheme were also discussed.
Prof Lo added that the Health Bureau will implement various co-operation initiatives with the Mainland as put forward in the Policy Address and deepen medical and healthcare collaboration with the Mainland, in particular the GBA Mainland cities.
TORONTO, Oct. 18, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Canadian Banc Corp. (The “Company”) declares its monthly distribution of $0.14238 for each Class A share and $0.06625 for each Preferred share. Distributions are payable November 8, 2024 to shareholders on record as at October 31, 2024.
Under the distribution policy announced in November 2021, the monthly dividend payable on the Class A shares is determined by applying a 15% annualized rate on the volume weighted average market price (VWAP) of the Class A shares over the last 3 trading days of the preceding month. As a result, Class A shareholders of record on October 31, 2024 will receive a dividend of $0.14238 per share based on the VWAP of $11.39 payable on November 8, 2024. The yield will remain stable at 15.00% (based on the VWAP) under this distribution policy.
Preferred shareholders will receive prime plus 1.50% with a minimum rate of 5.00% and a maximum rate of 8.00%.
Since inception Class A shareholders have received a total of $22.80 per share and Preferred shareholders have received a total of $10.77 per share inclusive of this distribution, for a combined total of $33.56.
The Company invests in a portfolio of six publicly traded Canadian Banks as follows: Bank of Montreal, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, National Bank of Canada, Royal Bank of Canada, Bank of Nova Scotia, Toronto-Dominion Bank. Shares held within the portfolio are expected to range between 5-20% in weight but may vary at any time. To generate additional returns above the dividend income earned on the PRESS RELEASE portfolio, The Company engages in a selective covered call writing program.
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